Ma performed Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up" with a group of senior executives on a portable stage that was pulled around the arena, the Journal reported.Courtesy of Alibaba
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Outgoing Alibaba chairman Jack Ma is known for being flamboyant, and his retirement party from the online marketplace proved to be no different.
2019-09-11
The occasion, officially billed as Alibaba's 20th-anniversary party, was held in an 80,000-seat arena and lasted for hours, Reuters reported.
"This is not the end of Jack Ma," Ma said to the crowd at the event, according to the Wall Street Journal. "This is just the beginning of passing down a heritage."
Ma, a former English teacher, founded Alibaba 20 years ago from his apartment in Hangzhou, Business Insider previously reported. Ma is now the richest person in China and has a net worth of $38 billion.
Keep reading for a look inside the massive anniversary celebration.
The event was held in the city where Alibaba was founded 20 years ago, at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center.
Employees dressed up and performed songs and dances poking fun at Alibaba's company culture.
Courtesy of Alibaba
The topics of the songs ranged from employees' frequent travel to the staggering wealth employees have accumulated since Alibaba's founding, according to The Journal. One group even reportedly sang part of Travie McCoy's 2010 song "Billionaire."
Ma performed Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up" with a group of senior executives on a portable stage that was pulled around the arena, the Journal reported.
"What a wonderful world with so many opportunities in it," Ma said in a moving address about Alibaba's future. "I wish to work in new fields. 'Green mountains won't change and the flowing waters are endless.' See you around."
Incoming chairman and current CEO Daniel Zhang also gave a speech, saying, "We believe that the best way to give thanks to yesterday is to create the most beautiful future together."
Taylor was a reporter for Business Insider from June 2019 to October 2020. She covered wealth, inequality, and philanthropy. Taylor reported on how the ultra-wealthy were able to access COVID-19 tests before the general public and interviewed leading philanthropists including investor Robert F. Smith and Panda Express co-CEO Peggy Cherng.She was previously an intern at CNN Business, TheStreet, and Yahoo News. Taylor joined Business Insider after earning a degree in Journalism and Politics with honors from NYU. She is a Tennessee native who currently resides in Manhattan and spends her time traveling, kayaking, watching crime dramas, and sipping chai lattes.Follow her on Twitter @TaylorNRogers.
